Higher incentives for your business and larger discounts for your customers are available until June 2027.
Until June 2027, plumbers in NSW can get paid higher incentives through the NSW Government’s Safeguard Acceleration Program. Give your business a competitive edge, while also helping your customers save on their heating and cooling costs.
Why you should join the Safeguard Acceleration Program
The NSW Government’s Safeguard Acceleration Program is providing installers higher incentive payments until June 2027 to boost the uptake of energy-efficient heat pump water heaters.
Partner with an Accredited Certificate Provider under the Program to:
- offer attractive discounts to customers in your local area
- make your quotes stand out from the competition
- install high-quality and well-established brands.
Why heat pump water heaters?
Heat pump water heaters eligible for incentives from the Safeguard Acceleration Program are high quality and energy efficient. These systems present several benefits for household and business customers, including:
- greater energy efficiency compared to traditional water heaters
- lower ongoing energy costs
- lower carbon emissions, helping NSW reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Why Joel is offering incentives
“Being able to offer incentives is a great way to generate more work for your business and also help your customer.”
- Joel Pisani, clean energy project manager.
Get started with the Safeguard Acceleration Program
Follow these steps to become an installer with the Safeguard Acceleration Program and start providing discounts to your customers.
To offer your customers discounts from the Safeguard Acceleration Program, you need to partner with an Accredited Certificate Provider.
Accredited Certificate Providers will guide you through:
- eligible heat pump water heater models
- how much you’ll be paid
- how the incentives work
- what discounts you can offer your customers
- compliance and evidence requirements.
To take advantage of these increased incentives, contact the Accredited Certificate Providers listed below to discuss partnership opportunities and the regions they service.
Demand Manager EC Focus Ecovantage MAC Trade Services National Carbon Bank of Australia
Once you have partnered with an Accredited Certificate Provider and have completed the required training you can include the discount in your quotes to customers.
Consider listing your services on comparison websites to help customers find you. These websites connect your business with customers who are actively seeking installers in their area.
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Important information about third-party comparison websites
It is optional for installers to sign up with a comparison website. These comparison websites can be used to help installers connect with customers and provide quotes. They may also provide support to customers throughout the quoting and installation process.
When partnering with comparison websites, remember to check if they are participating in the Energy Security Safeguard.
The NSW Government does not take responsibility for any interactions or outcomes experienced by using comparison websites. The listing of these comparison websites should not be considered as an endorsement of their services or a recommendation to use them. These comparison websites may be listed for an undetermined period and we may remove them at any time.
Installers pay a service fee for every lead they receive. It is your responsibility to find the right comparison website that suits your business’ specific needs and circumstances.
This list of comparison websites will be updated as more become available. If you know of other comparison websites interested in being listed here please contact us by emailing [email protected]
Before starting the installation, your customer will need to complete a form nominating the Accredited Certificate Provider you are working with. This is essential for the discount to be provided to the customer.
After installing the eligible heat pump water heater, you must collect the required evidence of the installation and submit the paperwork to your Accredited Certificate Provider. This is a requirement for the upgrade to be eligible to receive the Safeguard Acceleration Program incentive.
Your Accredited Certificate Provider will provide approval that the job is complete, so they can generate certificates for the work. The revenue from the sale of these certificates is paid to you as your incentive.
About the Safeguard Acceleration Program
The NSW Government’s Safeguard Acceleration Program is supporting the uptake of energy efficiency upgrades under the Energy Security Safeguard (the Safeguard).
The Safeguard uses market-based schemes to incentivise uptake of energy-efficient technologies. These schemes include the Energy Savings Scheme (ESS) and the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme (PDRS). The incentives from these schemes allow installers to get paid while offering their customers discounts on the upfront cost of installing energy-efficient technologies.
The Safeguard Acceleration Program is giving installers higher incentives and allowing larger customer discounts in some regions of NSW needing support. The Program is helping people in NSW:
- save money on their energy bills in the long-term by using less energy
- reduce maintenance costs with newer appliances that are more efficient and reliable
- reduce their emissions and be an active part of helping NSW reach net zero by 2050.
Who to contact if you have questions or issues
If you have any questions about the Safeguard Acceleration Program and its incentives, speak with an Accredited Certificate Provider.
If you have any issues when dealing with an Accredited Certificate Provider, you can contact us at [email protected]
If you have any questions about the heat pump water heater compliance and licensing requirements you can refer to information from the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART). IPART is the Energy Security Safeguard’s administrator.
Your customers can find out more about the heat pump water heater incentive here.
FAQs
The NSW Government’s Safeguard Acceleration Program is supporting the uptake of energy efficiency upgrades under the Energy Security Safeguard (the Safeguard).
The Safeguard uses market-based certificate schemes to incentivise uptake of energy-efficient technologies. These schemes include the Energy Savings Scheme (ESS) and the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme (PDRS). The incentives from these schemes allow installers to get paid while offering their customers discounts on the upfront cost of installing energy-efficient technologies.
To increase uptake of the Safeguard’s schemes in particular regions, the Safeguard Acceleration Program has contracted some Accredited Certificate Providers (ACPs) to operate in these regions with guaranteed certificate prices.
These certificate prices enable local installers to pass through a higher incentive to customers in markets and regions targeted by the Program.
You must work with one of the Accredited Certificate Providers listed on this webpage to offer this larger discount, and to receive the higher incentive.
Installers complete eligible installations and provide the required documentation to Accredited Certificate Providers. Accredited Certificate Providers are accredited businesses responsible for ensuring all installations comply with the requirements of the Safeguard’s schemes. They create certificates proportional to the energy savings the installation will generate. Appliance models that are more energy efficient will typically create more certificates.
The certificates are sold to parties obligated by NSW legislation to offset their energy use by buying these certificates. The Accredited Certificate Provider passes the dollar value of the sold certificates to the installer, which allows the installer to provide discounts to their customers.
For more information visit the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) website.
The higher incentives will be available until June 2027 or until the funding for these higher incentives is exhausted. After June 2027, installers can continue to access the Energy Security Safeguard’s incentives at the standard market value.
Accredited Certificate Providers manage the paperwork and eligibility requirements for the Energy Security Safeguard’s scheme incentives on your behalf. Accredited Certificate Providers will pass through the discount you’ll be able to offer your customers and discuss how the commercial arrangement will work with you. You should discuss opportunities with all of the Accredited Certificate Providers listed on this webpage to ensure you find the best commercial arrangement for your business model.
The Accredited Certificate Providers listed on this page have contractual arrangements with the NSW Government’s Safeguard Acceleration Program to provide higher incentives to installers. As the market develops, more Accredited Certificate Providers may be included.
The value of the incentive depends on the heat pump water heater model being installed and the certificate price an Accredited Certificate Provider has received to deliver installations in a specific region of NSW. You should discuss this arrangement with all the Accredited Certificate Providers listed on this webpage to ensure the commercial arrangement works best for your business model.
Accredited Certificate Providers will train and help you collect the evidence required to access the incentives under the Scheme. Accredited Certificate Providers often have systems to streamline the process and make it easier for installers.
If you are interested in becoming an Energy Savings Scheme Accredited Certificate Provider visit the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) website.